Best Areas in the US for the Hobbyist Musician ?

[Radar]

Here in Rochester NY (a medium size City) and the surrounding suburbs, there are many Community musical Groups; Concert Bands, Orchestras, Big Bands, etc. As well as fire department sponsored marching bands that all give concerts throughout the area. One of the things that helps our community is having two great Music School in the area. Eastman has many Community programs including a big New Horizon Program aimed at getting seniors involved in music. There is also the Hochstein Music School which offers private lessons, and class lessons in music theory. Although there are lots of groups in the area to play with here for free, opportunities for paying performances are limited and usually go to Eastman Students and faculty.

[MaryAnn]

Tucson has quite a few amateur groups; some are raising their levels and sort of weeding out the less competent. A couple are led by aging conductors and may not be around for very much longer depending on the health of those people. The British style brass band is always looking for people to play treble clef tuba parts. One of the orchestras, which is more pops-oriented, often needs a tuba player. I have played in that one and in the more classically oriented one, and the pops one had great parts. One of the higher level concert bands that would require a higher level player, often is bereft of *reliable* tuba players.

I'll put my own criteria: I am looking for a location where I would be accepted with pro level musical/ensemble skills (not on tuba at this point) and lesser capability of producing highest level physical playing, BUT in a climate where I could have windows open year-round. That should narrow the criteria considerably, huh? For the guy who thought the question too wide open. I fully understand the openness of the question and think it a great approach, for receiving ideas that would never have arrived without that openness.

MA

[Chadtuba]

I moved to the Twin Cities area just at a year ago now and have found this to be a great area for a hobbyist musician. Within a 10 minute drive of where I live there are at least 4 community bands that perform frequently. There are quite a bit more opportunities if you are willing to drive even just a little further. In the first three months I was here I sat in a rehearsal with one band that wasn't a good fit for me but then found two others that were a great fit. I now direct one of those bands and have managed to "recruit" my trombone playing wife into that one.

The city of St. Paul puts on a free Concert in the Parks series during the summer with a different group performing almost every evening from late May through September, often with two groups performing on the weekends. I know there is some doubling of groups over the course of the summer season, but not a lot. Concert bands, jazz bands in all sizes, dance bands, barbershop choirs, vocal jazz, chamber groups, and anything in between.

That said, I am a very satisfied musician in the Twin Cities.

[soyezu]

I'm also a Twin Cities transplant and I have been surprised by the number of performance opportunities for amateur musicians. A 2011 article from the Star Tribune puts the count of community bands in the Twin Cities at 50 and 128 for the whole state. The twin cities also have the second most theater seats per capita behind NYC. On an absolute basis, the Twin Cities, with a population of 3.2 M cannot support the same number of arts venues as someplace like NYC with a population of 8.4 M.

Of course, you also have to take more than musical opportunities into account. For example, one of my coworkers bought his girlfriend an engine block heater for Valentine's Day this year and she was thrilled. The same weather that encourages engine block heaters also encourages my wife and I to light a fire and play duets in the warmth of our house through the cold months.

My wife and I have come to the conclusion that the many positives of the Twin Cities greatly outweigh the cold winters.